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From the U.S. Navy to BSR radio DJ

Posted Apr. 12, 2010

By Shantae Rollins

Nathan Lehota, a native of Mantua, has managed to
accomplish quite a bit in his 25 years. After serving his county in the U.S.
Navy for six years, he made the rocky transition to becoming a civilian and a
college student.

Lehota, a sophomore, is pursuing a bachelor's degree in broadcast
journalism and electronic media production as a double major.

"The transition from active duty to civilian
life is quite a lifestyle adjustment," Lehota said. "Although being in
college has some similarities to being enlisted, it is not even close to the
same."

While waiting for the post-9/11 GI Bill, Lehota found that the
money he'd saved up wasn't enough to cover his expenses. In an effort not to
fall behind financially, he made the tough decision to sell some of his
personal belongings and pick up a few construction jobs.

"I just got out the Navy in July 2009 and started school last
fall," he said.

In the
Navy, Lehota's fast-paced lifestyle consisted of 100-hour work weeks, stressful
work environments and loneliness, and although he's living the college
lifestyle now, his days are still filled with demanding classes and
extracurricular time commitments.

This semester, he's enrolled in 16 credit hours, works as
assistant technical director and DJ at Black Squirrel Radio (BSR), runs the
audio on Wednesdays, is behind the camera on Tuesdays and co-produces on
Thursdays all for TV-2. Lehota also hasn't strayed far from his U.S. Navy
roots. He's the president of the Kent State Veteran's Campus Club.

"I got involved with BSR because radio is always something I
wanted to do and learn more about," he said. "My favorite part about being a DJ
is making other people happy and making myself happy while I'm doing it. It
gives me a sense of accomplishment and tells people that told me I'll never
amount to anything, they were dead wrong."

Lehota's radio show, "Pretty hair and thunder (PHAT)," is a mix of
hair-metal music and talk radio and airs Mondays from 4 to 6 p.m.

"I talk about nutty news going on around the world and talk about
interesting facts and history of hair metal," Lehota said. "It is not my
favorite genre of music, but I like hair metal's energy; it's something I think
the new generation could associate with."

Lehota said his military experience prepared him to cope with the demands
and expectations of college.

"lt [the Navy] gave me a sense of respect and appreciation of
things I took for granted before," Lehota said. "Also, I have become more
confident and self aware. I've channeled a new level of self-discipline I
didn't have before the Navy."

CCI is working with the
Kent State ROTC program and the Center of Adult and Veteran Services to recruit
more veterans into its communications programs.

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